J. Steven Moore
Conductor
2026-2027 SEASON
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WITH LIBERTY FOR ALL
NOVEMBER 15, 2026 | 2PM
Guest Artist: Pamela Smitter
Pamela Smitter, D.M.A. is an internationally experienced trumpeter, educator, and arts administrator with over 30 years of combined professional performance and university-level teaching. She has held adjunct faculty positions at Miami-Dade College, Purdue University Fort Wayne, Hope College, Grand Valley State University, and Alma College, and has taught at the conservatory level in Venezuela. A former longtime principal trumpet with major orchestras and an active soloist, Dr. Smitter brings elite artistic standards and a global perspective to her work in music education and artist development. She has served as a lead musician and clinician for Carnegie Hall’s LinkUP program and is a recurring trumpet adjudicator for Carnegie Hall’s National Youth Orchestra 2 (NYO2). Fully bilingual in English and Spanish, she is committed to inclusive, student-centered education that fosters musical excellence, confidence, and professional readiness.
HOLIDAY HALLELUJAH
DECEMBER 13, 2026 | 2PM
Guest Artist: Jodi Keogan
From the United States to Italy, Ms. Keogan has enchanted audiences with opera, Neapolitan traditions, Broadway, and selections from the Great American Songbook.
She directs and stages her performances with the greatest of ease, and she rouses her audiences to standing ovations. Ms. Keogan has played leading roles with full orchestra at the Teatro Marrucino in Chieti, Italy; she sings seasonally with the Southwest Florida Concert Band; and she has entertained for the Nassau Music Society in the Bahamas. She continues to keep a rigorous concert schedule nationally and internationally.
THE POWER OF MUSIC
JANURY 17, 2027 | 2PM
Guest Artist: Intermezzo Choir
Bio coming soon.
THE MAGIC OF MUSIC
FEBRUARY 21, 2027 | 2PM
Guest Artist: James Jones
James Jones is a Jazz Vocalist. As leader of the James Jones Quartet , he has performed with a number of incredible Jazz, and Rhythm and Blues Artist. When James was 12 years old, he saw the legendary James Brown perform at the Apollo theater in Harlem. And automatically knew singing and performing was his life. He formed his first band, The Soul Musicisans, who often performed with Kool & The Gang, up and down East Coast. James eventually recievd a two years scholarship to study voice at University of Connecticut, He studied opera Dr. Andrew Frierson and and Jazz with Dr. Hale Smith. James has been a member of African Amercian Opera Society of Harlem, having perfomed with Actors Avrey Brooks Star Trak) and Robert Guillaume, better known as Benson. Al Jarreau, Johnathan Butler, and George Duke, He has been a featured Jazz Art at The Sarasota Selby Botanical Garden's Jazz Event, Ther Bonita Springs Concert Band, Southwest Florida Concert Band, and The Atlanta Jazz Festival .
STRIKE UP THE BAND
MARCH 21, 2027 | 2PM
Guest Artist: Whitney Grace
Whitney Grace is delighted to be reunited with the SWFL Concert Band! Whitney works as a vocalist and actor. Whitney loves her husband, her wonderful family, and cackling with the audience during her one-woman shows. For upcoming antics and concerts or to see a list of theatrical credits, visit www.whitneygrace.show or her Instagram @bazazzproductions. A Punta Gorda native, Whitney studied at Palm Beach Atlantic University before beginning her professional career.
BROADWAY AND BEYOND
APRIL 18, 2027 | 2PM
Guest Artists: Carolann Sanita and Gerritt Vandermeer
Carolann M. Sanita is thrilled to be back onstage with the Naples Concert Band this season! A NYC native, Carolann has toured as Marian in the first national tour of The Music Man and internationally as Maria in the European and Asian tours of West Side Story. Some favorite credits include being a vocalist with Linda Eder at the Palace Theatre on Broadway and Encore’s No, No Nanette at New York City Center. Select regional credits include Flat Rock Playhouse, TheatreZone, Artpark, South Coast Repertory Theatre, The Cape Playhouse, Geva Theatre, Arkansas Repertory Theatre and Olney Theatre Center. She has been a soloist with the Naples Philharmonic Orchestra, the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, the Santa Rosa Symphony Orchestra, the SWFL Symphony Orchestra and the Gulf Coast Symphony Orchestra. Carolann has served as a member of the Voice Faculty at FGCU for the past 14 years and runs CSV Vocal Studio, LLC where she teaches private voice lessons and masterclasses, as well as CSV Photography where she takes professional headshots for actors and musicians.
Gerritt VanderMeer is a Southwest Florida-based vocalist, actor, and teacher. Born and raised across half the states in the Great Lakes region and educated in the valley of the mighty Wabash, his career has taken him to Los Angeles, New York City, and beyond. He has appeared on the big screen, the small screen, and on stages across the country, from big to small. Here in Southwest Florida, he has performed as a soloist with the Bonita Springs Concert Band, the Naples Philharmonic, Opera Naples, and the Gulf Coast Symphony, and as a member of the acting companies at Gulfshore Playhouse, Florida Repertory Theatre, and TheatreZone. He has served on the faculty of the Theatre Program at Florida Gulf Coast University since 2012.